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Honoring Caps goalie Braden Holtby's playoff beard

Michelle R. Martinelli
Published 3:32 p.m. ET June 7, 2018

There is only one sure thing about this year's Stanley Cup Playoffs: Washington Capitals goalie Braden Holtby has the most epic beard.

Whether you love it, hate it or are a tad grossed out by it, you can't deny it's incredible.

The Caps' goalie - who has a 92.3 save percentage going into Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final against the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday - typically has a beard, but it's often trimmed and nicely groomed. He also looks like a totally different person when clean shaven.

But this year, Holtby's playoff beard has evolved into something truly magnificent.

With the Caps - who have a dangerous 3-1 lead going into Game 5 - advancing to the finals for the first time in two decades and presumably because he hasn't trimmed or shaved a single part of it, his beard has transformed from a somewhat traditional thick and lustrous facial hair to an all-consuming monster that conjures up his Holtbeast nickname.

And it's no longer limited to his face. Thanks to a deep playoff run as Washington hopes to claim its first Stanley Cup, Holtby's playoff beard now flows down the front of his neck and into his chest while also connecting to the hair on the back of his neck. At a minimum, it's impossible not to be amazed.

Sure, plenty of other players and teammates of his have a solid beard game, but no one is even close to being in Holtby's league. Although to be fair, he had a formidable head start on players who halted their shaving routines specifically for the playoffs.

The 2016 Vezina Trophy winner is often a consistent anchor for his team in net. But for all we know, his power to have series-saving shutout performances and make jaw-dropping stops stems, in part, from his Herculean beard.